Lively political discussion has been a cornerstone of American democracy since our republic’s founding. Yet, on campus, there are many students that feel that they have to hold their tongues on political matters for fear of verbal retribution.

While the political culture we have each played a role in enabling at Skidmore is most harmful to those with dissenting points of view, it is damaging to all of us in the long run—and counterproductive for efforts to achieve the progressive policy goals many of us share.

Since we are a primarily liberal, democratic school, progressive professors often express their personal ideals and political thoughts in a way that suggests they believe all students in the classroom will inevitably share their views on issues like race and politics. Subsequently, our community tends to only embrace one way of thinking.